PRIVAcy POLICY

This privacy notice tells you what to expect us to do with your personal information when you interact with the Life on Hard Mode newsletter and its associated paid subscription and digital products. 

Contact Details 

Life on Hard Mode is operated by Brad Kelley as a sole trader. 

Email: lifeonhardmode@substack.com 

What Information We Collect, Use, and Why 

To provide the newsletter and subscription services 

We collect or use the following information: 

  • Name and email address 

  • Payment details (processed securely via Stripe) 

  • Purchase and subscription history 

  • Communication preferences 

  • Messages or correspondence you send to us 

For service updates and communications 

We collect or use the following information: 

  • Name and email address 

  • Communication and marketing preferences 

  • Purchase or subscription history 

To comply with legal requirements 

We collect or use the following information: 

  • Name and contact information 

  • Transaction records 

Lawful Bases and Data Protection Rights 

Under UK data protection law, we must have a lawful basis for collecting and using your personal information. You can find out more about lawful bases on the ICO’s website. 

Consent 

When you subscribe to the newsletter or opt in to communications. All of your data protection rights may apply, except the right to object. You have the right to withdraw your consent at any time. 

Contract 

When you purchase a paid subscription or digital product, we need to collect or use your information to enter into or carry out that contract. All of your data protection rights may apply except the right to object. 

Legitimate interests 

To operate and improve the services and content we provide to readers and subscribers. 

Your Data Protection Rights 

Under UK GDPR, you have the following rights: 

  • Right of access — you can ask for copies of your personal information. 

  • Right to rectification — you can ask us to correct or delete information you think is inaccurate or incomplete. 

  • Right to erasure — you can ask us to delete your personal information. 

  • Right to restriction of processing — you can ask us to limit how we use your personal information. 

  • Right to object to processing — you can object to the processing of your personal data. 

  • Right to data portability — you can ask us to transfer your personal information to another organisation or to you. 

  • Right to withdraw consent — where we rely on consent as our lawful basis, you can withdraw it at any time. 

If you make a request, we will respond without undue delay and in any event within one month. To exercise any of these rights, please contact us at the email address above. 

Where We Get Personal Information From 

We collect personal information directly from you when you: 

  • Subscribe to the newsletter via Substack 

  • Purchase a paid subscription or digital product 

  • Contact us by email 

We may also receive data from third-party platforms we use to operate our services, as described in the section below. 

How Long We Keep Information 

We retain your personal data for as long as you have an active subscription or account, or as otherwise necessary to provide our services. In some cases we retain personal data for longer where required to comply with legal obligations, resolve disputes, or collect fees owed. Where we no longer need to retain personal data in an identifiable form, we will either delete it or retain it only in anonymised or aggregated form. 

Who We Share Information With 

We use the following trusted third-party platforms to operate our services. These platforms process your data on our behalf under their own privacy and security policies: 

  • Substack — email newsletter delivery and subscriber management 

  • Stripe — secure payment processing. Stripe Radar is used to manage payment eligibility by card country. 

We do not sell or rent your personal data to any third party. 

Sharing Information Outside the UK 

Both Substack and Stripe are based in the United States. Where your personal data is transferred outside the UK, we ensure that appropriate safeguards are in place in compliance with UK GDPR. Both platforms operate under Standard Contractual Clauses or equivalent transfer mechanisms approved by the UK Information Commissioner. 

For further information or to obtain details of the specific safeguards in place, please contact us using the email address above. 

Cookies and Website Tracking 

Substack, as the platform through which this newsletter is delivered and its website hosted, uses cookies and similar technologies to operate its service. This may include tracking of website user journeys and usage analytics. For full details of how Substack uses cookies, please refer to Substack’s own privacy policy and cookie notice at substack.com. 

How to Complain 

If you have any concerns about our use of your personal data, please contact us in the first instance using the email address at the top of this notice. 

If you remain unhappy after raising a complaint with us, you can also complain to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO): 

  • Address: Information Commissioner’s Office, Wycliffe House, Water Lane, Wilmslow, Cheshire, SK9 5AF 

  • Helpline: 0303 123 1113 

Last updated: 19 March 2026